


Dreville: Understanding.

by Readingfanfics



Series: Prompts [96]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: First Kiss, Happy Ending, Hogwarts Eighth Year, M/M, Talking, draco got attacked, neville is a bit pissed off, neville takes care of him
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-28
Updated: 2020-05-28
Packaged: 2021-03-03 03:14:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,446
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24417952
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Readingfanfics/pseuds/Readingfanfics
Summary: “Who the hell did this to you?” Neville asked, looking in shock at Draco’s stomach. The word traitor was carved into the pale flesh, drops of blood running down from the end of the letters. No matter how much Neville tried to stop the bleeding it just continued and Neville forced himself to not throw up. It was brutal and obscene, the word staring at his face as he pressed another bandage against it.
Relationships: Neville Longbottom/Draco Malfoy
Series: Prompts [96]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/545386
Comments: 10
Kudos: 85





	Dreville: Understanding.

“Who the hell did this to you?” Neville asked, looking in shock at Draco’s stomach. The word traitor was carved into the pale flesh, drops of blood running down from the end of the letters. No matter how much Neville tried to stop the bleeding it just continued and Neville forced himself to not throw up. It was brutal and obscene, the word staring at his face as he pressed another bandage against it. 

“Not important.” Draco said and it took a few seconds for Neville to realise that was the answer to his previously asked question. He looked up, seeing the beads of sweat on Draco’ forehead as he gritted his teeth together. 

“It’s fucking really important, Draco! Look at you! It’s- it’s-”

“Nothing I don’t deserve.” Draco whispered, letting out a grunt as Neville moved his hand away to look at the wound. It still looked just the same and Neville’s pulse went up in panic. What if the bleeding never stopped? What if Draco died because of this? He let out a forceful breath, shaking his head to himself.  _ No _ . He wasn’t going to let this happen. 

“You need to lie down on the bed so I can have a closer look. Clearly this was done with magic so there has to be a magical solution.” He got up, reaching out his hand for Draco to take but the man didn’t move. Instead, he looked down at his stomach, fingers carefully touching the marks. He gritted his teeth, breathing out through his nose before looking up at Neville. 

“It will heal on its one. Just leave it.” 

“You’re an idiot if you think I’m just going to let you sit there and bleed out.” Neville snapped, gesturing at Draco to take his hand, letting out a soft growl when Draco hesitated too long. “Lie down on the bed or so help me, Draco!”

“I don’t-”

“You don’t deserve this!” Neville stepped closer, towering over him. Draco hunched into himself, tension settling in his shoulders, and Neville had never seen him so  **frail** before. It twisted something inside his stomach, making it hard to breathe. “Draco, please.  _ Please _ .” Neville pleaded, reaching out his hand again and this time Draco took it, crushing when he got up. The stream of blood increased for a moment and Neville swallowed, focusing on placing Draco gently on his bed. 

As soon as Draco lay down, the bleeding stopped and Neville let out a sigh in relief. He’d never been the best at dealing with blood. Draco watched him with just a hint of amusement before he grunted again, nails digging into the sheets underneath him. 

“I have some healing potions. I don’t think they will undo the curse but it should help with the pain.” Neville muttered, rummaging through his trunk until he found the bottles. He took some time to read the labels, deciding which one would be best. A misused potion would do more bad than good and Draco was in enough pain as it was. Not that Draco himself seemed to think so. 

“Okay, this one should help you. Drink.” Neville said, handing the potion to Draco who sniffed it first, mouth forming a thin line as he held the bottle away from him. 

“This smell disgusting.” 

“You know what they say, the worst the smell, the better the results.” 

“Neville, I-”

“Drink the damn potion, Draco! I’m not going to poison you.” Neville crossed his arms, raising an eyebrow as they watched each other. The letters on Draco’s stomach stood out against his pale skin and Neville could hardly bare looking at it anymore. He let out a sigh, uncrossing his arms before sitting down on the bed next to Draco. 

“Why are you being so stubborn about this? I promise you, it will help.” Neville said, giving a small smile when Draco eyed the potion again. He watched Neville for a few seconds longer, than placed the vial on his lips and drank it all. Neville breathed out in relief, taking the empty vial from Draco as Draco pulled a face in disgust.

“That’s horrible.” 

“Didn’t say it would be pleasant.” Neville grinned, patting Draco’s hand when the man muttered in annoyance. “Won’t take long for it to help. How are you feeling?” 

“I- I don’t know.” Draco whispered, staring at his stomach before lying his head down and looking up at the ceiling. Neville stood up and went to the bathroom, taking a damp cloth back with him to wipe away the sweat on Draco’s face. Draco startled for a second, his hand going to his wand but he soon relaxed, closing his eyes. 

“You’re not going to tell me who did this, are you?” Neville asked, letting out a sigh when Draco kept quiet. “Why? I don’t understand? This person, or persons, hurt you in broad daylight, in our school! They should get expelled or worse.” 

“ **I don’t expect you to understand,** Neville.” Draco said after a moment, sadness in his eyes. He touched his stomach carefully and Neville noticed that the blood had finally stopped flowing. He took the damp cloth back to the bathroom, rinsing it out before going back and cleaning up Draco’s stomach. 

“Could just use a cleaning spell.” 

“Your body has had enough magic for today.” Neville replied, his voice tense as he cleaned up the last of the blood. The letters were still bright red, almost glowing like neon lights in the dark and Neville blinked his eyes, mortified when a tear ran down his cheek. 

“Oh, Nev. It’s fine. The potion is helping, I hardly feel any pain now. And the letters, they’ll disappear in a day or two, I think. The wounds aren’t deep enough to stay permanently.” Draco sat up carefully, placing his hand on Neville’s shoulder and squeezing it. “Seriously, you don’t have to cry.” 

“Why? Because you don’t deserve my tears?” Neville asked, giving Draco a hard look. Draco looked down, dropping his hand from Neville’s shoulder, clasping them together on his lap. 

“I’ve done horrible things, Neville.” 

“And you don’t think I know that? Or that I’ve forgotten? Trust me, I remember.” Neville said, taking his wand and pointing it at the cloth. It disappeared with a snap and Neville placed his wand back in his pocket. Ever since the war he was never without it, even when he slept. 

“I-” Draco started,biting his lip when Neville looked up. Neville ran a hand over his face, tiredness seeping in. It had been a hard week at school, with a lot of tasks and tests and practice lessons. It seemed harder to focus these days, memories from last year seeping in at any time of the day. 

“I don’t understand why you’re being my friend. Why you care.” Draco whispered, his pale cheeks turning soft pink as he averted his gaze. Neville watched him, eyes going from his face to the word traitor on his stomach to the Dark Mark on Draco’s arm. Most days he forgot it was there and seeing it now made his stomach do a flip. He reached out, taking Draco’s wrist and touching the Mark, holding on tighter when Draco tried to pull away. 

“Maybe it’s because I think you deserve a second chance?” Neville said, thumb going over the outline of the skull. Draco shivered, his eyes a fraction darker than before and Neville licked his lips, mouth suddenly feeling dry. 

“Nev-” 

“This doesn’t define you, Draco. It’s part of you but it’s not all you are.” Neville said, impulsively going down and placing a kiss on the Mark. He heard Draco’s sharp intake of breath and let go of Draco’s wrist, his cheeks burning up. 

“I’m sorry- I-” Neville stumbled over his words, trying to get up from the bed but Draco reached out, taking his arm and pulling him back down. The letters on his stomach stretched because of the movement and it took a few seconds for Neville to stop staring at Draco’s stomach. “I shouldn’t have done that.” 

“It’s okay.” Draco whispered and Neville startled when he realized how close he was, Draco’s lips almost touching his. His heart went into overdrive, the heat on his face intensifying when Draco took his head between his hands, his eyes blazing with emotions. 

“I- I know this is crazy. I know we’ve barely started with this whole friendship thing but- but I-”

“But you?” 

“But I really want to kiss you right now.” 

Neville didn’t get the time to respond. Draco leaned forward, closing the distance between them and Neville stopped thinking as he felt Draco’s lips on his. 

The end. 

**Author's Note:**

> The prompts that started this story were: “I don’t expect you to understand.” / Frail
> 
> Not beta'd.


End file.
